Category: Genesis

I’ve been reading a collection of Terence Fretheim’s essays over the last month that have been fantastic in offering his many insights into theology and Scripture. Fretheim is one of those OT scholars who can write in a way that is both accessible and constructively provocative. One of the essays, “Creator, Creature, and Co-Creation in… Continue reading A Rereading of Woman in the Garden: With Fretheim

The final which I assigned for my Advanced Preaching students was to produce a devotional podcast on a preselected portion of Genesis concerning the life of Abraham (those doing the first two chapters did not submit so sadly I don’t have anything on Genesis 12-13). I am happy to post these ones here and welcome… Continue reading The Life of Abraham Podcasts

I just realized I have never posted anything (other than my thesis) dealing with the range of meaning for the Hebrew יוֹם (yom) which is often translated as something like “day”. With all of the kerfuffles (that is a specific theological term 😉 ) over the word “day” in Genesis 1, I thought I’d do a… Continue reading What Is In a Day? Genesis One

In Sunday School this week we covered the account of Noah in Genesis 6-9. And I was struck once again by the contrast between the ancient Near Eastern (ANE) accounts that parallel the Biblical Deluge/Noah account. In the ANE accounts the gods destroy mankind with a flood because of their “noise”* which the gods find… Continue reading Eating Your Theology (Gen.6-9)

In Sunday School this week we covered Genesis 1. Something that struck me was verses 29-30: Then God said, “I give you every seed-bearing plant on the face of the whole earth and every tree that has fruit with seed in it. They will be yours for food. And to all the beasts of the… Continue reading Eating Your Theology (Gen.1)

5:1-8 – Esther’s Request. After three days of fasting (by both the Jews of Susa and Esther and her entourage), Esther determined it was time to see the king. The motif of three days of waiting for restoration/deliverance is found several times throughout the OT: Gen.22:4; 31:22; Jonah 1:17; Hosea 6:2. It is important that… Continue reading Esther 5-6 – The Tale Turns

3:1-6 – Haman…the Agagite. Whereas the last we read would have suggested that Mordecai should have been rewarded by the king, we find only the mention of another man who instead receives honors and acclaim from the king…and this man will seek for the destruction not only of Mordecai, but of all the Jews. Haman… Continue reading Esther 3-4 – A Time for Action

1:1-3 – The stage is set. According to Adele Berlin, chapter one “portrays the Persian court in all its decadent lavishness” and “sets the tone of the book” which is a “tone of excess, buffoonery, and bawdiness” (3). This would characterize Xerxes and Haman, but does not seem to accurately describe either Mordecai or Esther. … Continue reading Esther 1-2 – Parties That Bring Change

11:36-39 – The king who exalts himself. This king does have certain levels of overlap with Antiochus IV Epiphanes (and many commentators believe that this individual is one and the same), but the description does not fit as it did in the verses prior. The best explanation seems to be that this king is some… Continue reading Daniel 12 – The Vision of the End